- Jun 28, 2015
- 483
- 296
Part of my Sunday Smoke Fest
I did some experimenting with this brisket. Results were both good and bad, and I broke one of the rules of experimenting by doing several "new" things at one time so not sure what changes where for the good and bad, but I don't have the $ or the time to do a brisket everyday to fine tune and experiment step by step!
Anyway, the big experiment was: While at Walmart this week, that had bottles of premixed Margarita with the alcohol already in the mix for $10. I grabbed one for the heck of it, and then when I was prepping for the smoke I "got to thinking" (always a dangerous thing). So I decided to see what would happen if I used it from a brine/injection.
So 2pm Saturday afternoon, I put the brisket flat in some margarita to brine, nothing else added just the margarita. If I do this process again I would probably add salt and basically do a wet brine just using the Margarita in place of water.
At 7AM Sunday I started prepping for the Smoke Fest. I pulled the brisket out of the brine, and then used my injector to inject some of the brine into the brisket. I don't know if this made any sense, and probably an unnecessary step since I already had wet brined it. I don't know???
Applied by rub = Dirty Dalmatian (Salt,CPB,Lemon Pepper) + Garlic Power + Onion Powder
At 9AM into 225 smoker (MES 30 with AMNPS tray 40/40/20 Apple/Cherry/Pecan)
I didn't have enough probes to have a probe in everything in the smoker, but by 2:30 PM it had some decent color and was in the stall in the 160 nieghbor hood), at that point I wrapped it in paper. This was my first brisket in paper instead of foil (remember I said I changed to many things at once!)
When it hit 195 at 8:30 pm I checked it with probe to see how tender. This was also the first time I tried to pull by feel instead of at exactly 205. (Again to many changes at once!!). IT still had quite a bit of resistance so I reset my alarm for 200.
At 9:20 it hit 200 and I checked again. Most of it felt tender with the probe that that point but I didn't trust myself (first time!!) so I went ahead and took it to 203.
At 9:45 it hit 203. I took it out of the smoker, didn't open the paper at all, wrapped in foil (to protect the towel, do you paper guys do that?), wrapped in a towel and into my cooler and said "OK google set a reminder for 2 hours"
At 11:45 when google started screaming out me I took it out and sliced.
Here's my thoughts and notes from the smoke and results.
This smoke went weird in beginning, period. Both the brisket and the pastrami brisket I had in the smoker got to 150 really fast. I know my smoker temps were running as they should, I double and triple checked with different air probes etc.) So I had to leave it in the stall for awhile to get enough color and bark.
I am undecided on the Margarita brine, It has an interesting flavor. It isn't as "in your face" beefy as my normal briskets (I usually inject broth), still beefy and brisket flavor just not as strong and there is a subtle lime background taste, if you didn't know it was there you probably couldn't identify it but there is definitely a light by distinctive "extra"
I believe I am a Paper Convert. The bark was much better than my normal foil briskets. The brisket is a touch dry but that could have been the Margarita brine, not having broth and foil crutch, or the fact that it was a fairly lean brisket. We travel fulltime in an RV, and are in South Florida right now, and trying to find a good brisket is tough unless you have "Trump" money!!. Again I experimented with to many things at once, I do believe foil + broth, probably lets you compensate for lesser quality meat at the cost of good bark. We will be in south Texas in early spring so I will definitely be trying paper again while there with a quality brisket, that will probably cost me half what I paid for this Choice flat from Publix.
I should have trusted my "probe feel", but again first time doing it that way. This brisket is closer to pulled brisket than sliced, pulling at 200 might have helped with that and even made some difference on the dryness.
If you have made it this far, you will now be rewarded with Qview
Bark was much better than my normal foiled brisket. Because of the issues I had early in the smoke, it didn't even have this much color before it went in the paper. Had it went in foil instead it would have been much light with likely no bark.
Just a touch dry and a little to falling apart. And for all you 'lectric haters, I know, no smoke ring, LOL
And here's some bonus footage.
Pulled Brisket Breakfast Burrito for breakfast. Made that 19 hours I spent yesterday all worth while!!!
I did some experimenting with this brisket. Results were both good and bad, and I broke one of the rules of experimenting by doing several "new" things at one time so not sure what changes where for the good and bad, but I don't have the $ or the time to do a brisket everyday to fine tune and experiment step by step!
Anyway, the big experiment was: While at Walmart this week, that had bottles of premixed Margarita with the alcohol already in the mix for $10. I grabbed one for the heck of it, and then when I was prepping for the smoke I "got to thinking" (always a dangerous thing). So I decided to see what would happen if I used it from a brine/injection.
So 2pm Saturday afternoon, I put the brisket flat in some margarita to brine, nothing else added just the margarita. If I do this process again I would probably add salt and basically do a wet brine just using the Margarita in place of water.
At 7AM Sunday I started prepping for the Smoke Fest. I pulled the brisket out of the brine, and then used my injector to inject some of the brine into the brisket. I don't know if this made any sense, and probably an unnecessary step since I already had wet brined it. I don't know???
Applied by rub = Dirty Dalmatian (Salt,CPB,Lemon Pepper) + Garlic Power + Onion Powder
At 9AM into 225 smoker (MES 30 with AMNPS tray 40/40/20 Apple/Cherry/Pecan)
I didn't have enough probes to have a probe in everything in the smoker, but by 2:30 PM it had some decent color and was in the stall in the 160 nieghbor hood), at that point I wrapped it in paper. This was my first brisket in paper instead of foil (remember I said I changed to many things at once!)
When it hit 195 at 8:30 pm I checked it with probe to see how tender. This was also the first time I tried to pull by feel instead of at exactly 205. (Again to many changes at once!!). IT still had quite a bit of resistance so I reset my alarm for 200.
At 9:20 it hit 200 and I checked again. Most of it felt tender with the probe that that point but I didn't trust myself (first time!!) so I went ahead and took it to 203.
At 9:45 it hit 203. I took it out of the smoker, didn't open the paper at all, wrapped in foil (to protect the towel, do you paper guys do that?), wrapped in a towel and into my cooler and said "OK google set a reminder for 2 hours"
At 11:45 when google started screaming out me I took it out and sliced.
Here's my thoughts and notes from the smoke and results.
This smoke went weird in beginning, period. Both the brisket and the pastrami brisket I had in the smoker got to 150 really fast. I know my smoker temps were running as they should, I double and triple checked with different air probes etc.) So I had to leave it in the stall for awhile to get enough color and bark.
I am undecided on the Margarita brine, It has an interesting flavor. It isn't as "in your face" beefy as my normal briskets (I usually inject broth), still beefy and brisket flavor just not as strong and there is a subtle lime background taste, if you didn't know it was there you probably couldn't identify it but there is definitely a light by distinctive "extra"
I believe I am a Paper Convert. The bark was much better than my normal foil briskets. The brisket is a touch dry but that could have been the Margarita brine, not having broth and foil crutch, or the fact that it was a fairly lean brisket. We travel fulltime in an RV, and are in South Florida right now, and trying to find a good brisket is tough unless you have "Trump" money!!. Again I experimented with to many things at once, I do believe foil + broth, probably lets you compensate for lesser quality meat at the cost of good bark. We will be in south Texas in early spring so I will definitely be trying paper again while there with a quality brisket, that will probably cost me half what I paid for this Choice flat from Publix.
I should have trusted my "probe feel", but again first time doing it that way. This brisket is closer to pulled brisket than sliced, pulling at 200 might have helped with that and even made some difference on the dryness.
If you have made it this far, you will now be rewarded with Qview
Bark was much better than my normal foiled brisket. Because of the issues I had early in the smoke, it didn't even have this much color before it went in the paper. Had it went in foil instead it would have been much light with likely no bark.
Just a touch dry and a little to falling apart. And for all you 'lectric haters, I know, no smoke ring, LOL
And here's some bonus footage.
Pulled Brisket Breakfast Burrito for breakfast. Made that 19 hours I spent yesterday all worth while!!!
